


Cats Help

by DeanWinchesterIsTrans



Category: Doctor Who
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-06
Updated: 2017-07-04
Packaged: 2018-11-23 11:00:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,323
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11401155
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DeanWinchesterIsTrans/pseuds/DeanWinchesterIsTrans
Summary: Somewhere along the way, the Master picks up a cat.





	Cats Help

**Author's Note:**

> okay so the Year That Never Was never happened and the Master just went w the Doctor after Utopia or something

The Doctor had saved the backwater planet twice that day, quite brilliantly he might add. It was even more impressive considering how the day-night cycle lasted about five hours-- five hours, ten minutes, and four seconds that day, his brain unhelpfully reminded him.

Despite the time difference, the human settlers did their best to try to make it look like their concept of home, even though most had probably never even seen Earth other than in videos or holograms. Though, with their eternally annoying habit of altering their surroundings and claiming them as their own, they managed to get it pretty close. It looked about like twenty-first century England, except for the slightly thinner air, lighter gravity, and the purple-ish hue to the sky wherever there wasn't a blue-sky hologram covering up the natural beauty of it all. The air tasted like copper, and someone nearby reeked of cheap floral perfume, annoying the Master to no end.

_"Let's go to this one lovely planet, they have these fields of bioluminescent flowers that light up at the very darkest part of the night, and it looks like the very hills are on fire," the Doctor all but pleaded. He was sick of going on adventures on his own, and he figured that the promise of burning hills you could walk through without getting singed might be enough to drag the Master out of the TARDIS._

_After hearing all of the Doctor's strict rules on interactions with the outside world, he had preferred staying inside the ship where he could blow things up with little to no repurcussions, which was rule number three. The first was solved in the TARDIS by being far away from any pesky life forms easily murdered. Rule number two was no taking over any planets, which arguably should've been rule number one._

_Easily distracted by bright colors resembling fire, the Master had agreed, figuring that it was just flowers, so how much trouble could they really get into? He had apparently forgotten he was traveling with the Doctor. ___

__The first planet-threatening issue happened to be a group of people who were personally pissed off about the sky holograms, and decided to try to remotely detonate all of them, which would've taken out the fake blue sky, along with half the planet. It would've been a sight to see, and the Master didn't particularly want to stop it, as that light show would've been spectacular on its own, flowers be damned. The Doctor however, didn't like the concept of letting a whole planet burn astonishingly enough._ _

__It wasn't too difficult to save them, really. The Doctor just had to take away the big red button away from the smelly humans who valued aesthetic over life, which fairly simple because they were all bitter old crones who remembered the purple sky, and just wanted the past back. It was kind of pitiful, really._ _

__The Master wandered off the moment the Doctor launched into his sentimental bleeding hearts morality speech._ _

__By the Doctor finished caught back up with him, the sky was slowly growing dark. Unsurprisingly, he was soon dragged back off into another planet-threatening catastrophe._ _

__Halfway through the Doctor's attempt at restarting the whole evening for the two of them, he was dragged off by a sharply dressed assistant muttering about lawyers and some government official owning the atmosphere and wanting it removed as quickly as possible._ _

__Apparently somewhere on the psychic paper he flashed about earlier it had mentioned him being a lawyer, making him the only one on the planet available, which was kind of essential when debating the legality of breathing._ _

__The Master watched him get pulled away with a carefully monitored expression. The Doctor spluttered, protesting against the assistant, looking back at his friend, but overall he understood that he was required for this, and he hoped he understood too._ _

__Of course he understood, that didn't mean he had to like it, or even be remotely okay with it. He turned back around and walked away from them, but towards where lights were beginning to flare up on a hill that looked like it hadn't been touched for centuries. By the time he had gotten to the edge of the grass, it really did look like a world on fire. Taking a step in, he noted the grass came up to about his waist. The flowers were about the same height, and the stems about the same color as the grass, making the flowers seem to float on the sea of grass._ _

__He grinned, no malice, just happiness. He forgot what he was doing here, he forgot why he was there, all he knew was that this was an amazing sight. He walked out to the middle of the field, spinning around once, living, breathing, existing, untouched by the sea of flame around him. He flopped down on the ground, noting how there didn't seem to be anything living in the field except for him and the plants. No insects, maybe the plants produced a natural insecticide? He wanted to take a sample to analyze, but he figured whatever it was that made it glow and kept pests away probably shouldn't be kept inside his hoodie pocket._ _

__None of the humans seemed to travel out here, perhaps just jaded to the concept of living by a sea of heartless flame. Which was sort of disappointing for them, but good for the Master for the time being. Noisy apes probably would've tested his ability to adhere to rule number one. Which, thinking of the rules, reminded him about the Doctor, wherever he might be. The Master sighed and leaned back, laying down in the field of fire in defeat. It was beautiful here, but it would've been better with him, though he might rather die than let the Doctor know that._ _

__He heard rustling through the grass, eyes snapping to the source of the sound. He sat upright immediately the moment he realized it wasn't the Doctor showing up after saving the day, heroic and arrogant. The Master reached for a weapon that he didn't have, another one of the Doctor's nagging rules._ _

__The rustling noise seemed to be approaching the Master, and he tensed up nervously. He realized his concern was most likely misplaced when he saw the kitten weave its way through the grass and mewl at him, as if, out of everyone on this godforsaken rock, he would want to give it food and attention._ _

__He sighed, "I don't have anything for you."_ _

__Its choice of fine response to that statement was to walk closer to him and mewl louder, repeating its request. He tilted his head, paying more attention to it. It seemed awfully scrawny, and it had no collar or anything distinguishing ownership._ _

__"Do you have a home?" he asked softly. If word of this conversation ever got out to anyone there would be hell to pay._ _

__"Meow." It looked sad._ _

__"That sucks," the Master replied. The kitten began crawling up onto his lap. He got an idea, possibly a bad one. "Do you want to come with me? My... friend and I travel, and you could live with us," he offered._ _

__The kitten purred in response, rubbing up against him. He smiled, and began to pet the kitten, which felt more calming than he was expecting, really._ _

__He kept on talking to the cat, asking several times if it was sure that it wanted to come with him. He also learned its age (only presented in a vague feeling, that he vaguely processed that as three weeks, two days, eight hours, Earth standard time, which was annoyingly precise, but it was only instinct). She also told him she was a she, and that she wasn't given a name, but she was open to suggestions._ _

__At some point during the questions and attention, she had fallen asleep and he was left sitting in the field alone, listening to the eerie sound of the wind through the heatless fire._ _

__The Master smelled him before he saw him, or even heard him, which was astonishing because the Doctor was usually extraordinarily loud in everything he did. He appeared to be tracking the Master by smell as well, not exactly knowing where he was going. Once the Doctor got to the edge of the field, he started calling the Master's name, sounding out of breath._ _

__The Master impulsively scooped up the kitten and stashed her inside his hoodie. He stood up quickly, internally sighing in relief that he was okay. Though, as he walked closer to the Doctor, he took in his disheveled appearance and the bruise left on his cheek. "Who?" he asked calmly, standing before the Doctor, trailing his fingers over his face, the tension in his shoulders betraying the even tone of his voice._ _

__The Doctor shrugged, an idiotic smile on his face, "Opposing lawyers. I don't really know too much about law, but I read through their books and found several loopholes against their legal claim to the atmosphere. They seemed a bit irritated that I had fairly won the case, and decided to take it out on me physically, so we really need to go now." The Doctor looked back up the way he had came, seeing two men in suits and ties marching down the street, staring directly at him with anger in their eyes. "Oh no. TARDIS now, yeah?"_ _

__Without waiting for an answer, he grabbed the Master's hand and sprinted back for their ship._ _

__They had hardly gotten half of the way there when the lawyers reappeared in front of them. 'Vengeful lawyers with personal teleports, oh that is so not fair,' the Doctor thought. He reached for his sonic to disable the teleports, but the lawyers were fast, one grabbing his screwdriver the moment it was out of his pocket, throwing it aside._ _

__The Doctor, having seen that route was out of question, began trying to reason with the one focused on him. "Come on fellas, you need the atmosphere, and your boss was going to take it away! You must understand why I did it, really."_ _

__The Master was having slightly more success with his attack lawyer, having managed to knock him unconscious, with only receiving a split lip himself. He turned back around to see the Doctor being held up off the ground by the throat. The attacker was lucky, really, that he was attacking two Time Lords. All that extra lung capacity and respiratory bypass ensured the Doctor's survival, which kept the Master from breaking any rules that night._ _

__The Master walked up behind the remaining goon, grabbing his arm and twisting it behind his back. Apparently this one had a low pain tolerance, immediately dropping the Doctor, shifting up onto the tops of his toes, trying to pull away from the Master's grip. "Let me go, you bastard!"_ _

__The Master just hummed, considering it, "Say you're sorry first."_ _

__"No! Who do you even think you are?" the hitman yelped, pride momentarily overtaking reason. The Master tugged his arm back even further._ _

__"Say it," he repeated. He knew it was petty and childish to continue doing this, but the Doctor was too dazed to do much, and the Master was pissed._ _

__"S-sorry," the man stammered out._ _

__"That's better," the Master said, letting go of his arm, and he smacking his hands over the assailant's ears, disorienting him. For once, the Master was the one to grab the Doctor's hand and run off to the TARDIS. Once they had made it, closing the doors soundly behind them, they both burst into laughter. It wasn't the weirdest adventure they had been on, but it was up there._ _

__The Doctor walked up to the console, starting the takeoff procedures, muttering about a planet made of shrubs. They had just taken off, the TARDIS wheezing and groaning as usual when-- "Meow."_ _

__She had woken up. Shit. The Master shifted the kitten closer to his chest._ _

__"Did you hear that?" the Doctor asked, confusion written clear as day on his face. "Is there something wrong with the engines?" He ducked under the control panel closest to him, as if he could find the issue there._ _

__The wheezing of the TARDIS stopped with a thud; they had landed, presumably on the planet entirely made of shrubs, or at least nearby. Maybe in orbit around it. The kitten meowed once more._ _

__"There it is again!" the Doctor exclaimed, popping back up and pacing around the central console. "Now what could be causing that? Her engines haven't ever sounded like that before..."_ _

__The Master gently lifted the kitten out of his hoodie. She meowed at him, indignant about being removed from her hiding place. The Doctor spun around and sighed loudly in annoyance at the sight of her._ _

__He walked back over to the Master. "We need to put it back, come on," he insisted, holding out his hand as if his friend would just hand her over._ _

__"No. She doesn't have a home," the Master declared. Then, mostly because the Doctor could be very boring when cross, he tried for politeness and asked, "Can she stay?" He was going to keep her, no matter what the Doctor said, but it was worth a shot._ _

__"I am not carrying around a pet on my TARDIS!" the Doctor spat out._ _

__"You keep all those humans!" the Master reminded him._ _

__The Doctor spluttered, "That's different!"_ _

__"No, it isn't!" The Master paused, staring at him for a few moments, then sighed. "Okay, if you let me keep her, I won't blow anything up on the TARDIS, or bother you at all when you're doing maintenance for a month."_ _

__The Doctor frowned, considering the offer. "And you'll be the one taking care of her?"_ _

__The Master grinned, knowing he had won. "Yes."_ _

__"All right then," hoping he wouldn't regret it, the Doctor agreed, "You can keep her."_ _


End file.
